How blogging in English can help you become a thought leader

The term ‘Thought leader’ is getting more and more common in the English language. As people increasingly turn to online resources to develop themselves professionally, thought leaders are ever more visible predicting the direction that a particular field of work will take in the future and sharing their advice on how to be more effective. There are thought leaders in a wide range of areas but they tend to have one thing in common – many of them have blogs.

So what is it that makes blogging so appealing to thought leaders and what can we learn from emulating the way they do it?

Organise your thoughts

The benefits of writing a regular journal are well documented and blogging can bring similar benefits. Having to organise your thoughts into a cohesive piece of writing is a great way to organise and catalogue them. Even if they are just ideas, getting them into a public-facing form means that they will be well organised if you want to go back and build on them later.

Develop your ideas

Because blogging is such a dynamic medium, it a great way to develop ideas. You can respond to comments from readers in order to develop an argument or case for an idea. You can also see what people find interesting or useful so that you know where you can be most helpful to your readers.

Establish a personal brand

Brands are an important part of business and in an increasingly competitive job market, your personal brand, or how you are perceived by your peers, is vital to developing a career or being considered a thought leader. Having your own space on the web to publish content means that people’s perception of you is shaped by the quality of your own work rather than what others say about you.

Engage with communities

The blogosphere is a lively place famous for trolls and arguments. It is, however, also a great place to find people who work in similar areas and who can support and share ideas with you. Connecting over a blog post you have written is a great way to meet like-minded people.

Build a platform

As you write more, you might gather a following. Building a platform of people who will help you share your ideas is a great way to get your message out there. While writing for yourself is good, sharing valuable ideas with others is probably the most rewarding part of blogging.

So, which thought leaders do you follow and how do you stay up to date on what they are writing? Share your answer below and recommend one thought leader you think language learners will find most valuable.